Beautiful Mess
by SailorMoonLover24
Summary: Serena Rose's career is in full swing, she's adapting to life as a doctor and all seems right, that is until she starts receiving strange calls and gifts from somebody she's never seen. With her life at stake, there is only one person who could save her. Enter Detective Darien Shields. He is the key to saving her life but will it be enough? AU. Disclaimer:I don't own Sailor Moon!
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to sailor moon, all characters are owned by Naoko Takeuchi.

Warning: This story starts off really dark and violent. Meant for mature audiences and future language and adult themes. You have been warned!

Chapter 1:

It was a beautiful autumn night, there was a slight breeze, the moon was full and the stars shining brightly. A woman, huddled up in a jacket entered her apartment. She noticed the door was slightly ajar but no lights were on. She was hoping it was just a robbery, she stepped into her apartment and turned on all the lights. There was nothing on the ground, no mess on the counters. Everything seemed to be in place.

She closed the door and locked it shut and leaned her forehead against the door and let out an exasperated sigh. She turned off all the lights except for the small lamp in her bed room. She walked towards her closet to change and then walked towards her bathroom to take a shower.

Twenty minutes later she dried herself off and changed into her pajamas. She exited her bathroom and sat on her bed. She felt something lumpy on her bed and turned her light on and noticed a scrapbook lying on her pillows as well as scattered confetti. The woman's clear blue eyes were soon filled with dread and fear. She turned towards her door and looked through the hallway and noticed the door was still closed and locked. Her face showed confusion and horror.

She made here way back to her bedroom, and picked up the book. She opened it delicately, afraid something would jump out. Once she opened it, it was filled with cut out pictures of her head placed on several different bodies, next to a man she had never met. In the background of the pictures were well known place like the Eiffel Tower and the Leaning Tower of Pisa.

She threw the book down with a gasp, there, a picture showed her drinking a cup of coffee from this morning. Scared and in shock, she walked towards the phone to dial 911, but the lines were cut. Now, she was in panic mode. She didn't want to leave the apartment, in fear someone was waiting for her outside. She walked into the kitchen to find some sort of weapon. She looked for the biggest knife she could and noticed every sharp object was missing.

Then she heard a sudden bang coming from her bedroom and tried to be as quiet as possible. The book was missing. Now she was aware of the fact someone was in her apartment. She felt a draft from behind her and slowly turned around to be faced with man and a sudden blackness fell over her.

She later woke up with a pain in both of her arms and a tugging sensation at her ankle. The room was dimly lit. What she could see was she was still in her apartment, her arms were tied tight on her headboard and her ankles were tied at the foot of her bed. She groaned loudly, thinking she was alone, until she saw a figure emerge from the hallway.

"Well look who's finally up sleeping beauty." The voice was sinister and cold.

"Who are you?" The woman asked, trying to deplete any fear in her voice.

"Honey, don't you recognize your own husband. I haven't been on business for that long." He replied.

"I-I-I don't have a husband-"

"Yes you do!" The voice was angry. The woman was surprised at the sudden outburst. "You saw the pictures we took together, in France and Italy. Well since you don't remember me, I guess a punishment is in effect." He walked towards her, and she saw a flash or silver and noticed it was her missing knife. "Now, do you want to tell me why you don't remember me? Or have you been whoring around while I've been at work?"

"I-I don't know what you're talking about-" She suddenly yelped and felt a sudden pain in her mid section. He scraped the knife across her stomach enough to draw blood but not enough it bleed out.

"Aaaaaahhhhh-" she tried to scream out before a pillow muffled her screams.

"Sshhhh! Sweetheart, we wouldn't want to wake the neighbors now would we?" She nodded her head yes and he released the pillow and gasped for air. Her arms were sore from trying to escape but it was useless. He slowly began his torture on her. He dragged the sharp knife down her legs, while he forcefully kissed her and worked his way down her jaw. She started to whimper, tears were forming at the corners of her eyes. "Oh sweetheart, do you like that?" She didn't reply, afraid she would scream again. "I said do you like that?" she still didn't reply which earned her a deep cut in the inside of her thigh. "Ami, every time you don't answer me, bad things will happen, okay?" She nodded obediently and he proceeded to kiss away the tears.

Ami could feel the blood seeping out of her body and she began to grow weaker and weaker by the minute. The last cut seemed to nick her femoral artery and she was losing too much blood. He continued to ravage her, he spread her legs and placed himself in between them. He slipped on a condom and slowly entered her. He bent down and whispered in her ear.

"You know, I really thought you loved me, but I can clearly see that you really don't care about me. So I think I'm gonna file for divorce, but the ride was fun." He exited her and made his way to the bathroom to wash himself off. He took out a serrated knife and dragged it over both of her thighs and then against her neck. He let her bleed out, and once she took her last breath, he untied her and changed her clothes and placed the scrapbook on her chest and moved her arms to hug it.

"We angel, you'll be missed but fortunately for me, I found someone else. Someone who can love me for me. Her name is Serena and she will be my finest book yet." He smiled and left the apartment without another word. In the distance, he could hear the police sirens, he smiled.

AN: That was the first chapter, I hope it was good enough for some reviews! Let me know what you thought about it! Good or bad.


	2. Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own any of these charcters.

AN: I hope this chapter can get the ball rolling. I would really apprieciate some reviews to let me know if this is worth continuing. Even if it's a one word review. Thanks for reading.

Chapter 2:

Detective Darien Shields looked at his partner of ten years, Seiya Hilt as they observed the bloodied bedroom of Ami Carson. They both received a call that another victim was killed in her own apartment. They entered through the caution tape and entered the victim bedroom. They observed the blood splatter on the bed and took note that she was in fresh clothes. then they noticed the book she was hugging. They both sighed, realizing this was another fallen victim.

"Man, we need to catch this guy before we find another victim." Said long time partner Seiya.

"I know, I know. You're not the only one who wants to catch him. This is the fourth victim in the past three months. All I know is that his is moving on fast from his victims." Darien replied. "So what we know now that we see a pattern is, is that he tortures his victim. All four of his victims have rope burn on their wrists and markings on their ankles. He starts with harassing phone calls and then weird gifts. He then breaks into their houses and leaves them a scrapbook of them "together" but leaves no finger prints."

"And who's to say that the pictures in the book aren't of him? We've have tried facial recognition and we have nothing. Darien, the murders are getting closer and we're running out of time here-" Seiya was cut off.

"I know, hopefully we get evid-" Darien was cut off by his phone ringing. "Detective Shields." he answered firmly. "Yes. Okay we're on our way." he hung up the phone. "It seems that the neighbor next door has something that could help us out." They walked out of the bedroom and Darien to the crime scene crew to put the book in the evidence bag and put it in the back of his SUV.

Minutes later, they met with an elderly woman. Darien flipped his badge as did Seiya.

"Hello ma'am we are here to discuss what you saw earlier today." Darien said.

"Well, I stay at home all day and today I went to water my plants at about five o'clock and I noticed someone trying to get into that apartment. I had never seen him before but I looked away before he could see me. He was carrying a blue bag and it look heavy. He shut the door behind him and turned the light on. About 45 minutes later he left to his car and drove away. I went back inside at about six o'clock and at about seven, I heard a car door close. I peeked outside my window and saw him again and this time he was wearing different clothes. Then she came home about an hour later and he never left." The elderly woman finished.

"He's starting to get careless and not pay attention to his surroundings." Seiya concluded.

"Either that, or he wants to be seen. Something tells me that his fifth victim will be the worst, and as of now we have no idea who that is. Ma'am is there any way your could describe what this man looks like?" Darien asked.

"Well he was about 6'3'', light blonde hair, tanned skin. He looked like he was in his mid- thirties, cold green eyes. He was wearing a gray baseball cap, loose fit jeans and a black shirt. He wasn't very big but he definitely looked threatening and dangerous." She finished.

"Thank you ma'am, you have helped us out a lot. We are sorry to disturb your night. Everything should be taken care of by now." Seiya finished the descriptions and closed his notepad and left the elderly woman. "Looks like the department is finishing up."

"Since I have that stupid scrapbook in the back of my car, why don't you head over to my place and well see if the book can tell us of our next victim." Darien said. "I'll start making copies of the files and what not and we'll take it from there." He finished.

"I would, but with Raye being seven and a half months pregnant, I really don't want her to wake up alone." Seiya said.

"Did you not tell her you were called on duty?" Darien asked.

"No I didn't want to wake her and risked her beating my ass. She's about ready to pop. She's so tired of being pregnant and she curses me for doing that to her body. But the hormone's are getting the best of her, she starting to get bitc-"

"Hey that's my sister your talking about!" Darien threatened. Although his best friend was married to his sister, he was still very protective of her. "I can't blame her, she's swollen from her ankles to everything else. Well you better get back home to your pregnant wife and I'll call you later to give you an update." Seiya shook his head and got in his car. Darien followed his actions and walked towards his SUV and drove towards his apartment.

Once he reached his apartment, ten minutes later. He took the book with him in hopes of finding some sort of clue that would lead him to his next victim. He entered the lobby and made his way towards the elevator and pressed the top floor. Once the elevator stopped, he took out his keys and unlocked the door. It was about four in the morning and he was wide awake. He turned on his coffee pot and laid out his work station.

After the coffee was read and he downed two cups he was ready to work. In the kitchen drawer he pulled out some latex gloves and opened the evidence bag that contained to book. He noticed the intricate design and color. He opened the book and saw the pictures of the "couple" in Europe. He flipped through the pages and pulled out some selective ones. On the back of the picture were the dates. He noticed towards the end of the book, the pictures taken were only taken a few day prior to the murder.

He shuddered at the thought that this sicko had been trailing her for a while. He opened the case file from the three previous murders. The pictures were taken at least two weeks before they were killed. Darien concluded that the killer was starting on his next project. Darien finished looking through the last book and the very last picture was of a different woman. He noticed she was very attractive, beautiful even. Her crystal blue eyes, long sun kissed blonde hair, rock hard body, legs that went on for eternity. His best guess was that she was his next victim. He vowed then and there that he would save this one.

Across town...

"Soon my love, we'll be together. Till death do us part."

Dun- dun duuuuunnn. Well that was chapter 2. Comments thoughts, reviews;D all is welcome!


	3. Chapter 3

Disclaimer: I do not own anything from Sailor moon, but I wish I did.

Chapter 3:

Midday the next day...

"Dr. Rose, you are needed at the front desk. Dr. Rose the front desk." said a nurse in the intercom. Serena Rose was an up and coming Emergency Physician. Graduated top of her class at Columbia Medical school. She has been working in trauma for about three years with a mentor before being set free. It was nerve raking at first, the ER was a busy and stressful place and she needed to keep calm. She had been working on her own for about five years, she could do this job in her sleep. She rushed down the stairs to the front desk.

"Serena here, how can I help you Mina?" Serena asked flashing her pearly white smile.

"There is a man in trauma one that keeps asking to see you and only you." Mina replied.

"Okay... I'll go see what's going on. Did you happen to get a name?"

"No I didn't. Nurse Callahan just put him in trauma one."

"Okay that's fine." Serena grabbed a clipboard that was not filled out and walked towards trauma one. She pulled back the curtain and stared at the man that looked to be fine. "Hello sir. I'm Dr. Rose. Could you tell me what hurts?" The man just stared back at her with his green eyes. "Sir?" she asked again.

"What? Oh sorry. Well, my head has been burning for a couple of days and I keep getting pains in my chest for about four days." He responded.

"Okay let me take you temperature and then take off our shirt." She turned around and left the room and walked towards Mina. "I have a feeling that he's fine, but I just going to do a routine check up but have security on speed dial." Mina nodded and Serena made her way back into the room.

The man already had his shirt off and was... smiling back at her. He looked perfectly fine to her but as policy goes she has to check the patients. She took his temperature, normal. His heart rate was normal and his lungs were perfectly healthy. She took some blood and called Mina in to send the sample to the blood lab.

"Well sir, you seem to be fine. You can put your shirt back on. I sent your blood to get checked out and should know if anything is wrong in the next few minutes." While they were waiting, the man seemed agitated and would not sit still, Serena noticed. Just as Serena was about to ask this man a personal question, he jumped off the bed and knocked her over. He pulled her on the bed with his hand over her mouth and took a several pictures of her. When he let go she screamed and he ran out of trauma, pushing whoever was in his way. Serena lay on te bed in complete and utter shock. She saw security run out the ER doors and Mina rushed o her side.

"Sere, are you alright?"

"Um, yea that was just a little scary. I wasn't expecting that to happen. He took some pictures of me and then tried to kiss me, but I screamed before he could." she made an exasperated breath.

"Do you want to call the cops?" Mina asked.

"No, let's all just get back to work." The night passed without any disturbances, but Serena was still shaken up about the incident. She clocked out at midnight and made her way to her car. She unlocked the door and sat in the seat. She put the key in the ignition but noticed something on her windshield. She stepped out of the car and picked up a piece of paper. She turned it over and saw it was a picture of her taken earlier. She was on the table with the stranger's hand on her mouth. She turned it over and written on the back was the date and time and a note:

_"__I'll see you soon..."_

Serena shuddered and hopped back in her car and drove away. Fifteen minutes later she reached her apartment complex. She left her car in the parking garage and ran down the stairs to the lobby, and from there the elevator. She pulled out her key and opened the door and closed it and locked it. She let out a sigh of relief. She walked towards the kitchen and placed her keys on the table. On the kitchen counter her house phone was blinking, showing unread messages. She played the messages while she looked for something to eat.

_"__Hey Sere, it's your favorite brother. Just checking up on you. I haven't heard from you in a while, starting to get worried. Mina is telling me how you are these days and she says you're working too hard. Anyways call me back. Love you."_

Serena made a mental note to all him tomorrow. The machine beeped and went on to the next message. All Serena could hear was the sound of heavy breathing and then it started talking.

_"__Hello Love. I sorry if I surprised you early today, but I just missed you so much. If you look in the microwave, I made you dinner. Nothing special. Well I gotta go, I'll see you soon. I love you."_

Serena opened the microwave and there see saw roasted chicken with vegetables and a baked potato. Now she was scared, she called 911 and threw the dinner away as well as the plate. The police sent someone over and then Serena heard a knock at the door. She opened the door and was meet with two men, on tall and skinny with long black hair and almost black eyes. Then the other man caught her breath. He was tall and very muscular with ebony hair that skimmed his eyes, midnight blue eyes that Serena jsut wanted to get lost in and perfect tanned skin. Serena caught herself staring.

"I'm sorry, you must be with the police department."

"Yes, this is Detective Hilt and I'm Detective Shields." they flashed their badges "You must be Mrs. Rose."

"Miss Rose. Please come in." Serena let them in and lead them towards the living room. "I'm curious why they sent two detectives."

"Miss Rose, we don't want to alarm you, but we believe you have fallen victim to a serial killer and rapist." Seiya said carefully.

"Miss Rose can you please tell us what has happened or when all this started.

Serena was trying to take in as much as she could and tried to speak. But she caught herself staring at Detective Shields again.

"Well I was doing my rounds today at the Emergency room and my nurse said there was a man in trauma one. So I went to check out the man and when I looked at him he looked perfectly fine. I asked my nurse to keep security on hand just in case. I went back into the room to check his vitals and such. I asked him to take off his shirt for I could check his lungs. I then drew blood-" she was cut off by Darien.

"Is there anyway you still have a sample of the blood?" He asked hopefully.

"Um yeah, it's at the blood lab at the hospital. But none of that was strange, just standard routine. Well when I asked him to put his shirt back on he complied. I turned around and he jumped off the bed and pulled me on top of the bed and covered my mouth. He then proceeded to take several pictures of me, and then tried to kiss me but heard security and ran out of the building."

"Darien, it sounds like we are one step ahead of him." Seiya turned to Darien witha little hope in his eyes.

"Did anything else happen, Miss Rose?" Darien questioned.

"Please call me Serena and yes. I just got off my shift at midnight and I walked to my car and found this" she opened her purse and handed a picture of her "it was taken when he was in the hospital and then I came home and there was a voicemail from him saying that he missed me and he kept calling me love and that I would see him soon. Then the message said he made me dinner. He was in my house, cooking me dinner." Serena seemed to go in a panic after the sudden realization.

"Miss Rose, everything is going to be fine. Take a deep breath, you're safe now. We're going to catch him." Seiya tried his best to comfort her, but Darien was to busy staring at this blonde angel. He wanted nothing more to catch this bastard before he ever laid a finger on her.

"Miss Rose-" Darien started.

"Serena."

"Serena, would it be alright if one of us stayed the night just in case. Ad in the morning we'll report this and get the blood sample. Right now it seems that you could use some sleep." Darien offered. Serena blushed at he thought of him staying.

"Um yeah that'll be fine, I'd feel much safer if you were to do that." She smiled at both of them and they nodded.

"I'll be right back, we need to call this into the department, we'll just be outside the door. Fell free to get ready for bed." Darien suggested. They walked out of the apartment. Seiya spoke first.

"Darien. What are you doing?"

"What are you talking about?" Darien asked innocently.

"Look I know you. She is his next victim. You can't get close to her. If we can't protect her, I don't want to see you get hurt because you care for her. I see that look in your eyes. You were checking her out. This is apart of the job and if Raye wasn't busting my balls every second of everyday I would stay but you need to be careful."

"Seiya I'll be fine. I hardly even know this woman. Sure she's attractive but this is my job and nothing else, no need to worry. We're gonna catch this sick bastard, not more lives are to be taken." They nodded in agreement and Seiya left, on his way home he was to call the station. Darien walked back into Serena's house. He pondered Seiya's words for a few moments. He didn't want to get involved with anyone at the moment, he prayed he could save this one and catch this guy, but he was getting worried it might be hard to ignore the possible feelings for this blonde. He entered the kitchen and heard the water running in her bedroom. He imagined what she would look like with the water and soap running down her long body. 'Stop it Darien! You have a job to do!' He heard the water shut off and the shower curtain slide across the rail.

Ten minutes later Serena emerged from the bedroom in shorts and a tank top. Darien had to suppress a groan as his pants became a little too tight for his comfort.

"Um there is a spare bedroom down the hall, and it has a bathroom. I know you don't have anything with you but there should be some spare clothes in the closet, you look to be about my brothers size." She smiled and left him to do what ever he wanted, she said good night and mumbled a thank you and made her way to her bedroom to get some shut eye. All the while, Darien stared after her.

"What are you doing to me Serena?"

Please R&R


	4. Chapter 4

Hey guys! I'm glad to read all the positive reviews, brought tears to my eyes (just kidding) but I really appreciate all of those that reviewed my story. I just want to clarify a review that I received, sometimes Serena like to be subtle about the whole 'I'm a doctor' thing, so pardon me for that mistake, I know it probably bothered a lot of readers and as for the evidence thing, she just wasn't thinking. She hasn't even heard of this killer because she's always working. Anyways, here's a new update. Enjoy! I still don't own any Sailor Moon.

Chapter 4

Darien woke up late the next morning with the sun burning his face. He slept on the couch that night and to that the couch wasn't comfortable was the understatement of the year. His back ached and his neck was killing him. He rose from the couch and smelled fresh coffee. He thought that Serena was already up, but noticed that the coffee was untouched. He called out her name but there was no response.

He searched the guest bedroom (which he forgot was an option to sleep in), the laundry, the only thing left to search was her bedroom. He walked to the other end of the hall and prayed she was in there. She couldn't have been asleep because the coffee was on. He knocked once and then twice. After there was no answer he slowly cocked his gun and opened the door slowly.

Her bed was made; nothing seemed to be out of place. He walked into her bathroom; there was no sign of the water running. He started to panic and prayed to God that this psycho didn't come in here last night. He walked out of the bathroom and made his way into the kitchen. He took a deep breath and took out his phone.

He started dialing Seiya's number when the front door started to creak open. He dropped his phone and aimed his gun at the door. Once the person stepped through the door he lowered his gun.

"Serena! What the hell are you doing?!" Darien yelled, once he noticed no response he saw her headphones in her ears. She closed the door and turned around.

"Jesus! Darien! Are you trying to give me a heart attack?" She ripped the headphones out of her ears.

"Are you kidding me? Where the hell were you?" Darien's anger was rising and he could feel the red in his face.

"I went for a run." Serena replied simply. She was cool and collected, not paying much attention to Darien's on coming anger. She brushed past him, into the kitchen. She grabbed a mug from the cupboard and poured herself some coffee.

"Again, are you kidding me? What the hell were you thinking?!"

"Jesus, tone it down. I don't see what the big deal is."

"You don't see what the big deal is? There is a killer on the loose, you happen to be the next victim and you don't know what the big deal is! Please tell me you're not that naïve." Darien concluded, his anger dropping a notch. "Why the hell weren't you at home?"

"Like I said before I went for a run, I thought nothing about it. I went a couple blocks and came straight back. And look I'm unscathed and untouched so just calm down. Some people clean when they are stressed, some eat, I run." She finished fiercely. Darien sighed.

"Look I'm sorry I yelled, but you need to understand that staying here with me or any other armed officer is what's best for you. I'm not gonna risk my life if you won't help yourself, that's dumb. Now either you do as I say or I'm leaving." Darien hoped his bluff would work. He was wondering where the sweet, quiet and polite girl from last night was. But standing in front of him was an independent stubborn woman, who he could tell didn't take no for an answer.

"Well I guess-" Serena was cut off by the doorbell. Darien became alerted and cocked his holstered gun and walked slowly towards the door. He looked through the peep hole and saw nothing. He opened the door and put his gun in front of him and looked to his left and right. He saw nothing, but on the floor in front of him was a red box.

Darien put the gun away and picked up the package and closed and locked the door. He placed the box on the kitchen table, where Serena could see it. She started to open the package but Darien stopped her.

"Don't!" He yelled. Serena slammed her hands to her sides and gave him a confused look. "Do you have any latex gloves?" she nodded and opened the kitchen drawers and pulled out two pairs of latex gloves. Both of them placed the gloves on their hands and Serena proceeded to open the box.

Once the top of the box was open, small heart shaped confetti flew out. After the confetti ceased, there was another box. Serena took the box out of the larger one and placed it next to the original. Darien took the original box and observed it, and after finding nothing, he placed it on the floor.

Serena tore the top of the box off and what she saw made her gasp and turn away from the box. Darien saw her reaction and looked to see what caused it. There in the box were pictures from her run this morning along with an envelope and a red liquid which Darien thought to be blood.

"Serena, Serena. Take a deep breath. You're gonna be-"

"I'm gonna be what Darien?" Her voice trembled. "You were right, I was too careless. I-I-I'll listen to you from now on. But we have to make this work together. I will not be some dog that has to listen to its master but for the most part I will do what I am told for both of our sakes." Darien was surprised at her statement.

"Okay, I understand, this will be a team effort. You have to trust me to keep you safe. No more going out on your own. Someone must escort you. For now you have two options. Option one; you call into work on temporary leave-"

"What's the second option? I'll resort to leaving work at a life threatening situation."

"Option two is I stay with you until we catch this guy. So I can go to work with and just stay close to you." Darien thought about that idea of him being close to her. Her crystal blue eyes were captivating him in every way. He could see her worries and fears. He would do anything in his power to protect her.

"I'll have to go with option two. By the way, what's in the envelope?" Darien was so caught up in thinking about being with her; he lost all focus on the box. Darien took out his phone and dialed Seiya's number. "What are you doing?"

"I have to call the department. This is officially evidence. This is our one chance to catch him before he does anything else." The phone rang twice before Seiya picked up. "Hey Seiya, its Darien. We have a situation over at Serena's." he paused. "Yes everyone's fine, just call the department. We have possible prints and an unidentified liquid. Yeah. Okay I'll see you then." Dairen hung up the phone and reached for the envelope. "Did you want me to read it or do you?" Serena closed her eyes and shook her head no.

Darien nodded and tore the envelope open carefully and he took the letter out of its confinements. He looked over it and swallowed hard then he read aloud:

_Hello love,_

_Long time no see. I must say your body is even more amazing in person than I could ever imagine. I'm glad to call you mine. You will be my finest work of art, don't worry though, I'll take good care of you. And as for lover, what's his name, Detective Darien, I've seen his work before but I'll rescue you from him soon. Don't worry love, I'll see you in due time._

_Till death do us part_

Darien finished and Serena's eyes were springing with tears mixed with anger.

"Does he think were married? That note signifies that he is mentally deranged to think that we have some sort of relationship. It sounds like he in fact doe think we are married. He has been planning this moment for a while. He knows you are here and thinks of you as a road block and his obstacle for his and mine's relationship. If he does end up… catching me the first thing he'll do is punish me for betraying his trust." Serena finished her statement and quickly ran into her room.

Darien was surprised at her reasoning. He would have never guessed that she would pull piece s of this together before Seiya and him. He was very impressed and that only added to this… infatuation. He was disturbed from his thoughts when Serena rushed back into the kitchen with a book in her hand.

"Okay call me crazy but hear me out. During my first years of college I took several psychology classes and I took great seriousness in understanding people's behavior and mental processes. I bought a book, several years back to brush up on the subject of psychological disorders. I think I know the type of person we are dealing with." Serena flipped through the pages. "I believe, and this is only an educated guess, this person is suffering from a disorder called erotomania. If a person is diagnosed with this disorder it means that he believes someone of a higher status is in love with him. It is a very rare disorder but it does exist. Now this is only a suggestion it will only be conclusive if a trained psychologist is profiling him."

Darien was blown away. How could this small angel have a brain of a thousand geniuses? 'You would think she would be too scared to function. No this angel has balls' he thought to himself.

"Do you have any of his previous victim's case files with you?" She asked.

Um yea, I have the two recent ones." Darien made his way to his briefcase and pulled out the case files and laid them down on the kitchen table. The boxes were set aside for the department to handle.

"Okay, his recent victim, Ami Carson. She had no unusual activity. She never filed a case on a stalker, seems like she was a quiet girl. Didn't have a roommate, no boyfriend and family killed when she was nine. She bounced from foster home to foster home until she could be emancipated. Graduated college when she was 20, then attended law school and graduated with honors by 26. She was highly intelligent. She soon became the most prominent lawyer in New York. I would say her status is of higher ranking." Serena read on and Darien was dumbfounded by her skills.

He honestly wanted to take this girl and ravage her right then and there. He wondered how she managed to focus and process everything that was going on. If being a doctor didn't work out for her, she could definitely be of use on the force.

"Okay so she was a higher status but she had no connection with any of the other murders-" Before he could finish , she spoke up.

"You are 100% right, there is no connection. Unfortunately if the disorder is severe enough, the person will not care who is involved. Therefore anyone could be his target. While you guys were investigating the previous murders, you were trying to find connections, which got you nowhere. While you were doing that, he was starting on his other victim, making it almost impossible to find his future victims." Serena finished and took a deep breath.

"So are you saying that if he doesn't catch you he'll give up and move on?" Darien was hopeful that no harm would come to his angel but he wanted to catch this person before anything could happen to someone else.

"Not necessarily. Like I said he has an agenda and will do anything possible to accomplish it. Now either you catch him or-" Serena was cut off by a knock on the door. Darien rose from the chairs and opened the door.

AN: There's chapter 4! I hope you enjoyed. Please review and let me know the verdict!


	5. Chapter 5

Hey guys! Glad to see positive reviews for my first story! I'm lovin' it. Thanks so much for reviewing and favoriting it means a lot. Anyway enough babbling, on to chapter 5!

Disclaimer: Still don't own Sailor Moon :'(

Btw this: '', means thoughts

Chapter 5:

Darien opened the door and was greeted by Seiya, and the rest of the team. Darien invited him in and Serena was no longer in the kitchen, but on the phone in her room.

"So how was your night?" Seiya asked slyly.

"Don't Seiya, I'm warning you. Nothing happened, I swear it. I fell asleep on the couch and she was in her room. Nothing happened." Darien replied defensively.

"Nothing happened to what?" Serena asked. "I just called into work. I know I said I wouldn't call in unless necessary, but I was on a pretty good roll and I didn't want to risk losing my mojo." Serena said with a smile.

"Um… nothing we were just talking about Seiya's wife. They thought she was in labor but turns out that she wasn't." Darien gave a nervous smile and Seiya almost couldn't contain his laughter.

"Oh Seiya! Congrats! I didn't even know you were married. She was probably experiencing Braxton Hicks contractions, nothing to worry about." Serena gave a smile and continued with the conversation she had with Darien earlier. "Okay back to reality, I went running this morning, my mistake, and I didn't even realize to leave him a note. Well when I returned, we had an argument and then there was a knock at the door and Darien found this box." Serena picked up the box and gave it to Seiya.

"Well, I'll have forensics look at it. See if there are any prints and, the liquid, to see if it's blood." Seiya said.

"Oh by the way before I forget. I called the lab before I got off the phone. We ran his blood that I told you guys I drew and it showed low red blood cell count; however we cannot identify who the person is, our technology finds diseases and not people who carry it. We could identify them if they were previously checked into the hospital but we have no file of him. But the good news is that I asked them to save some for you to process, we just have to pick it up." Serena beamed. Darien laughed and returned the smile.

"Well I guess we'll have to pick that up. I'll leave with the team, looks like they collected all the evidence that could be of use. You guys can go pick up the blood and I'll see you back at the precinct." With that Seiya left and the team cleared out of her apartment.

"I have to go pick up some things at my place if you don't mind. If I'm gonna stay here I don't want to keep wearing the same clothes." Darien asked, Serena meanwhile blushed noticing he was still wearing the same clothes as last night.

"Of course. Let me just wash up and we can go." Serena left the room, to her bedroom.

Twenty minutes later she emerged from her room, looking clean and fresh. She was wearing skinny jeans and a long sleeve dark pink V-neck and all black vans. Darien noticed her legs were also toned and seemed to go on forever. Her stomach was flat and toned as well. Her long hair was flowing down her to her mid-back. She grabbed her black coat and gloves.

"Um. Darien are you ready?" Serena asked. Now it was Darien's turn to blush and she must have caught him staring at her. Well who could blame him? She was sexy as all hell, and at the same time beautiful.

"Yea, sorry. Didn't mean to stare. You clean up nice." He winked at her and walked to the door, missing Serena's very noticeable blush.

They left the apartment and walked to his car and headed to his place. The car ride was filled with comfortable silence. Both of them trying to sneak a peek at each other and when their eyes connected they both blushed. About ten minutes later they reached his apartment building.

"You live here?" Serena was in utter shock. Never in a million years would she have guessed he lived in such an extravagant building. Looked to be about 50 stories, if that. It had a perfect view of the Hudson River and Central park.

"What? You expected me to live in some run-down apartment?" He chuckled.

"I would necessarily say run-down. Less expensive and in a smaller building yes. How do you afford this? Detectives don't make that much money do they?"

"We make a living to the point where we can support ourselves and a small family. I, on the other hand, had a head start. My parents gave my sister and I a trust w\once we graduated college and from then on w worked for our money. Come on, looks like a storm is brewing and we don't want to get caught."

Sure enough the sky started to get darker and the wind was picking up. They walked into the lobby and towards the elevator. Once there, Darien pressed the third to last floor, which consequently was a penthouse. Again, Serena was in awe by this. She had had a strange feeling about him all day. Not a bad one, but one she shouldn't have during this ordeal.

This morning when he was frantic that she wasn't there when he woke up gave her butterflies in her stomach. He was truly worried about her, she could see it in his eyes. Then when they were reading the note, she saw the fury in his eyes. And finally when she walked out of her room before they left for his home, she had caught him staring and that sent her into over drive.

He was quite attractive in her eyes and her feelings for him were escalating each second with him. But they lead to separate lives. Her, a busy, complicated life of a doctor, and him, the life of a cop. She had lived that life and she didn't want to think about where it got that person she experienced it with.

Serena was jolted out of her thoughts when she hear the elevator stop and Darien speak to her.

"We're here." He lead her into his apartment and turned on the lights. Her mouth was agape at the sight. Very simple, black furniture, flat screen TV, Some paintings, pictures of family, nothing looking too expensive.

"Nice place you got here." She complimented as she walked to the window. On a sunny day, the park would look so green and the river, almost crystal blue, but with the storm and autumn weather, the trees were yellowing and the river cast a haze over itself.

"Thanks, it provides me a safe haven." He walked into his room to grab spare clothes and his essentials. Serena meanwhile was looking at his pictures and noticed a girl with black hair, just like his but with red and purple undertones. She had porceline skin and what looked to be purple eyes.

"Is that your sister?" She somewhat yelled.

"Yea, her name is Raye. That's Seiya's wife. She's about seven months pregnant and her hormones are all over the place." He walked out of his room towards her.

"Well you can't blame her, she carrying an almost four pound fetus in her, and she probably gain like 30 or 40 pounds. Her ankles hurt and she just wants her baby to be born. When you have kids, you'll have to deal with the same thing with your wife." She rolled her eyes and continued with te other pictures.

'I want to experience that with you.' Darien shook his head of that thought. 'Where sis that come from?'

"Did you want something to eat, it's nearly noon and you haven't eaten all day."

"What were you thinking?"

"I could make some sandwiches, I haven't had a chance to go to the store, but I have sandwich stuff." He walked towards the refrigerator.

"That's fine with me."

They each made their own sandwich and sat at the table and ate in silence.

"So where are your parents? I noticed them in some of the pictures with you and Raye." Serena started.

"Well their both in retirement, my father recently retired from being the CEO at Crowned Inc. They were in charge of technology support and trade. He made a killing which led my mom to quit her teaching and homeschool her kids. Raye and I grew up in an almost perfect family. We had everything we could have wanted. So now they are traveling the world, we hear from them every couple of weeks." Darien finished.

"That's great to hear, it's very are I hear a story from people that had a great family relationship. So what was college life for you like?"

"Well, I attended New York University, and at first I majored in business, but somehow transferred to criminal justice and I stuck with that. But don't ask me what changed my mind because I have no clue. Business just didn't seem to be for me. I worked hard in college not many parties but I will admit that I had my fair share. Enough about me what about you? What is your family like?" Darien took a bite of his sandwich and noticed Serena look down. "Hey." He said softly "What's wrong? Did I say something?"

"Um no my family is just a touchy subject for me."

"You don't have to tell me about it." He offered.

"No it's alright besides you shared with me now I want to share with you." She smiled gently and continued. "My family was like yours we were perfect. I had an older brother who was just as protective as my father. My mom was beautiful and smart. My dad was also a detective, from the 14th precinct. He was one of the best, taught me everything I know now. That's why when we were ging over the case files earlier I knew what I was talking about, my father also taught me how to protect myself if any danger was coming my way." At this Darien sighed silently.

'She knows how to protect herself, that relieves some worry.' He thought to himself.

"Anyway, when I was six, my brother was eleven, my mother was diagnosed with lung cancer, but we didn't catch it in time. The doctor gave her about seven moths to live, give or take. And sure enough, seven moths later, she left us." Serena's eyes were watering at this point.

"Serena, you don't have to tell me this, you know that right?"

"I know." She wiped the tears that threatened to fall. "But I want to, I want you to know my background story." Darien grabbed her hand and stroked it and she continued. "After my mom died, my dad was so depressed, he started to dive head first into his work so my brother ended up taking care of me up until I was about thirteen. He was eighteen and went off to college. I told him that leaving me with dad would be fine. I confronted my dad on many nights and he started to act like a father again. He would bring cases home and we would work on them together, strengthening our relationship. That lasted until I was about 16 then…" She trailed off and more tears fell. Darien tightened his grip on her hand and brought his other hand to wipe away the tears.

Once he started to understand Serena and her sometimes annoying stubbornness, he didn't pity her by he empathized with her. He had no idea what it was like to lose a parent. He just wanted to hug her and whisper sweet nothing in her ear.

She gathered up all her strength and continued. Smiling at Darien when he wiped away her tears, a slight blush stained her cheeks.

"One night, he got home late and he felt bad for not calling, so he treated me to some ice cream. We went to a nearby parlor and walked Central Park, it wasn't too late about seven, but it was dark. We heard a noise behind us, in the rose bushes. We started to walk faster and soon a man appeared in the shadows. He started arguing with my dad and he pulled me behind him to protect me. The next thing I know I hear a shot go off and my father fall in front of me. The guy ran away, I guess aware of the fact her just shot somebody. I called 911, but by the time they got her it was too late." Serena stopped and took a breath.

At this point Darien was almost in tears; her life was so complicated, filled with death and loss. His heart ached for her. If he didn't guess already he would say he was slowly falling in love.

"There was a pool of blood around his body, the bullet grazed his coronary artery and he bled out. My brother came out on the first flight here from California and since he was a legal adult he took guardianship of me until I was 18. Since that day I vowed to help people. With my mother's cancer and my father's murder, I didn't want anybody to go what I went through, so I dedicated my life to helping people, and what better way than working in the ER?" She tried to give a small laugh at the end of her statement.

"I want you to know something. You can share anything with me and I will not pass judgment. I'm always here to listen; you don't have to act so tough around me. I can see through your façade, you want to be the tough girl. But it doesn't always have to be that way." He reached up again and wiped her tears.

She gave him a sincere smile and their eyes connected and they both slowly leaned into each other. Their lips almost pulling together like gravity. They were so close, until…

"Um, I guess we better get going huh? Don't want to get caught in the storm." Darien quickly stood up from the table and grabbed His and Serena's empty plate.

Serena was disappointed that the kiss didn't happen. 'Maybe he didn't want to take advantage of me in such a vulnerable state.' She tried to convince herself; nevertheless she shook her head and grabbed her coat.

"Yes, let's go." With that they left the apartment and expected the rain to start down pouring, what they didn't expect was what happened at the hospital. Things were taking a turn… a turn for the worse.

AN: There's chapter 5! I hope you enjoyed, worked all night on it. Don't forget to review!


	6. Chapter 6

Wow guys! So sorry about the late update, I know everyone uses this excuse, but college has been kicking my butt, this is the last time I take classes during the summer. Anyways here's a new update. Serena's past is resurfacing. Enjoy!

Chapter 6:

On the way to the hospital, the car ride was silent, a little awkward considering what almost happened in Darien's apartment. Both of them were looking at each other in the corners of their eyes, hoping they wouldn't make any eye contact. Serena was about to speak up when Darien's phone rang.

"Darien." Darien answered the phone and put it on speaker.

"He man. we just got forensics back on the letter Serena got and the prints belong to a Molly Baker..." Seiya started saying. "Here's a picture of her, and I have a hunch that she's not the killer, just the killer's accomplice." Seiya sent the picture and what Serena saw, sent chills up her spine and she sat back in the seat with her hands over her face. Darien saw her reaction and became concerned.

"Serena, what's wrong? Do you know her?"

"Know her? I work with her, but that's not her name. It's Nancy Rushman." There was a pause after her confession. " Darien. She works in the blood lab." As soon as that left her mouth, Darien hung up the phone and pressed his foot to the gas pedal. Darien through his phone down, putting both his hands on the steering well, dodging traffic, trying not to kill them both.

Serena fell back to her seat from the impact of acceleration and at the same time caught his phone and heard it ringing. Seiya was calling them back and Serena answered.

"Hello?" Serena said uneasily.

"Serena? Is everything alright. I was cut off." Seiya said worriedly.

"Um... well. Darien and I are fine, it's just that the woman you sent us the picture of, I work with her but her name is Nancy Rushman and she works in the blood lab so Darien's going like 1,000 miles per hour trying to get to the Hospital." Serena felt the car jolt to a stop and Darien running out of the driver's seat. "And we're here. We'll call you when were done, but I have a feeling you just lost a good amount of evidence." She heard Seiya reply but hung up trying to catch up to Darien.

"Darien! Slow down." Serena tried to get Darien to calm down and away from the restricted area. "Darien calm down, you won't be able to get in there without authorization." Serena pulled out her card to enter the area. Once she slid it through the keypad, they were in.

"Serena, who else has access to this place besides you and Nancy?" Darien asked. Rushing to the other end of the hall.

"Virtually every doctor and nurse that works in this building." They finally walked into the blood lab. "The lab is useful for every doctor, it gives us results faster and more reliable. Unfortunately, anyone that can get there hands on a key card, can get in." Serena finished. She soon saw her friend, Lita Green, he blood lab supervisor. "Lita! Have you seen Nancy?"

"Oh hey Serena. No I haven't she was here late last night and I guess she called in sick today, why?" Lita asked skeptically.

Serena turned towards Darien and told him to tell Seiya to find any known addresses of Molly/ Nancy.

"Listen, I don't have much time, do you know where the blood sample for the patient I took about a day ago? I had you run it to see if you could locate who was but you said we didn't have the technology for it." Serena asked hopefully.

" Yea, but I gave it to one of your guys." She looked straight at Darien. "Yea he said that there would be a detective that would be coming here, looking for it so he decded to take it to you."

"Lita... What did he look like?" Serena grabbed her by her shoulders, not in a painful manner but with enough pressure to make her squirm.

"Well, he had light brown hair. Short and a spike in the front. Light skin between six foot and six foot five, about 196 pounds., with a scar on is left cheek and bright green eyes. He said his name was officer Chuck." Lita finished, by the looks of their faces, Lita knew something was very wrong. "I did something wrong, didn't I?" Lita asked tears trying to break free from her eyes.

"Hey it's okay. You didn't know any better, you were just listening to a cop. It's fine." Serena gave Lita a big bear hug and wiped away her tears. Darien saw her compassion and caring nature, Darien's heart couldn't help but swell up with love. "Listen just go back to work and call me if the cop comes back okay?" Lita nodded and both Darien and Serena left the blood lab and walked back to the car and got in.

"I need to call Seiya and give him a heads up."

"Can you put it on speakerphone please?" Serena asked pleadingly, Darien couldn't resist those puppy eyes and complied.

"Hey Seiya, bad news, the blood sample is gone. apparently, an officer Chuck, came in before we got here and took it, and Mol called in sick this morning. Please tell me you have some good news." Darien begged.

"Dammit! No I'm sorry man, the note was the only thing to come back from the lab with some evidence. The red liquid is blood, but animal blood, so there is no body. We found one small partial print, but definitely not enough to get a proper match. We didn't find any known addresses of Molly, but Nancy has an address and I sent over a squad car to check it out."

Darien sighed in frustration. All he wanted was to have Serena safe from any harms way. He felt like he was chosen to protect her, he wanted to protect her. He looked over at Serena and noticed she was deep in thought, like she was trying to put the pieces of this puzzle together.

"Alright man, Lemme know if anything turns up." With that Darien hung up the phone. "Serena, hello? Anyone in there?" Darien chuckled and moved her slightly at the shoulders.

"Darien." He heard her barely speaking above a whisper. "I need to go get something at my place. I think I can help out. I'll explain everything once I get what I need." Darien nodded his head and headed towards her apartment.

Darien and Serena reached her apartment in under ten minutes. The rain was getting heavier by the second. When they reached her apartment the door was slightly ajar. Darien's instincts kick in and he cocked his gun and pushed Serena behind him. He slowly kicked the door open and he entered, gun raised. When he was in the doorway, he turned on the lights and Serena's place was trashed. They walked through the apartment together and nobody was there.

The kitchen had glass everywhere, the living room had her movies scattered everywhere, her TV broken on the floor. Both bathrooms had shampoo and soap everywhere on the floor. Toothpaste was on both of the mirrors, He bedroom was by far the worst room. Pictures of her and her friends were in pieces. Her parents wedding picture was totally mutilated. Pillows in shreds, but her closet seemed untouched.

"I called in the Crime Scene Unit, so don't touch anything. With much needed luck we might get a print. We'll wait here for the unit, but you can't stay here." Darien said, trying to process anything he could.

"Where the hell am I suppose to stay? My brother has no room at his apartment... Most of my friends are out of town and I don't want to put anyone in any possible danger. So where am I suppose to go?" Serena asked slightly annoyed. Darien thought for a minute before he replied."

"With me." He replied simply. "I have enough space for the two of us, you would have your own room and all the essential. We just need to go and run out and get you a couple of outfits that will last you for a couple of days, while you apartment is getting processed."

Serena was at first cynical about the whole situation but soon complied. She thought that the time spent with Darien would bring them closer and from everything that has happened recently she trusted him fully. Serena heard the team getting there equipment and footsteps going up the stairs.

Darien was speaking with the head of the unit when Serena slipped away to get what she needed. She walked towards her room, pretending to be upset about the mess. Which she was but she was more focused on what she needed to get. Thankfully, no one was in her bedroom yet. She walked over to the right side of her bed and lifted up the skirt and prayed that the person that did this to her house didn't take what was under the bed. She felt around for it and felt what she was looking for. She grabbed it and stood back up and tucked it in the back of her pants and pulled her jacket tighter to ensure it wouldn't get wet in the rain.

Serena heard Darien call her and walked out of her room towards the living room then to the door. He gave her a strange look but stepped outside the door signaling she wanted to leave. They rain in the rain towards the car and jumped in.

"Look, if you don't want to stay at my place we can get separate room a hotel or something."  
"No oh God no, it's has nothing to do with that. I really appreciate it, everything that you have been doing for me. It's just that, I don't want to wear this for the next couple of days and I don't want to sleep in this so can me stop by the store, Walmart is probably better. Just two outfits." Darien had to smile at her appreciation and her minor freak out. He drove to the nearest store which was a Target.

The bright target sign was the brightest it would ever be. For it being only five o'clock it was dark, which made there shopping trip to be cut even shorter.

"I just need to some pajamas and a couple of outfits and a pair of shoes." Darien nodded a followed her. Serena bought three pairs of jeans, two skinny and one normal. A pair of Levi shoes, two long sleeve shirts, two short sleeved, two pairs of shorts and two tank tops. She also bought some underwear and socks and a jacket. Then made their way to get some shampoo and conditioner, along with body wash, deodorant, lotion, a brush and razors. Hey, who knows how long it will take to get her house back to normal.

They left the store within fifteen minutes and headed back to Darien's apartment. The rain seemed to lighten up a bit but once they reached the apartment, it picked up again. Luckily they were inside before the wind sped up. Darien greeted the doorman and he opened the elevator for them. They reached Darien's floor and it was amazing he was the only one on the floor, so they didn't need to worry about bothering anyone.

Darien unlocked the door and turned on the lights. Serena still couldn't shake the fact that this was the place of their almost kiss. She hoped she could turn that almost into a definite.  
Darien helped her with her bags and put them in her room... on the other side of the apartment. She couldn't help but be a little frustrated at the distance between them.

"So here's your room. The bathroom is on the right side of the room, and my room is across the hall and past the living room. I'm gonna go make us something to eat. Why don't you take a shower and relax?" Serena couldn't argue with that suggestion, she nodded and he left her alone and closed the door behind him.

She sat on the bed and observed the soft texture of the bed spread. The bed itself felt brand new. She wondered how many women had had the opportunity to be here, in his apartment. "Well duh Serena, he's basically a god, probably has tons of women here. Hell, even I'm here." She said out loud. She huffed and pulled her clothes out of the bags and placed it in the drawers. In the closet she found some hangers and towels. She took the folder from her backside and went back to the drawers and placed it in one, then went back into the closet. She took off her wet clothes and placed them on the hangers to dry. Then she took a towel and her sleepwear and went to the shower. She let down her hair, falling past the bottom of her shoulder blades.

She turned the water on and stepped in. The warm water seemed to wash away reality. She squeezed some shampoo in her hand and worked it into her hair. She let it settle in and then washed it off. She grabbed the conditioner and worked it in, leaving it in for a while. She then grabbed the body wash and worked it over her body, slowly massaging the legs and arms, getting a good lather. She grabbed her razor and started shaving her legs.

She finished taking her shower and turned the water off and stepped out of the shower to dry herself off. She wrapped her towel around her hair and put her clothes on and left the bathroom. She grabbed her lotion and spread it on her arms and legs.

"Thank god the heater is on because I don't think I would last in these shorts and tank." She laughed o herself. If she wanted Darien to notice her, she needed to show off her long legs and arms. She was going t go through with this if it was the last thing she did.

She released the towel from her hair and combed it out. Making her hair go it's natural state, curly. Finally all she had left was a small amount of lip gloss. She looked herself over in the mirror. Short shorts? Check. Tank top? Check. Lip gloss? Check. Hair? Check. And for the final piece ankle socks. It always made her legs look even longer. Once she was satisfied she made her way out of the room and towards the kitchen where she smelled an assortment of flavors. She saw Darien standing over the stove.

"Boo!"

"Jesus Serena, don't sneak up on me like that. Especially if i am handling hot stuff." She turned around and the look on his face was priceless. Seeing her in almost nothing stirred something in the pit of his stomach. 'Damn hormones' He thought t himself.

"Sorry, I couldn't help it. Whatcha makin'?"

"Just some chicken pasta with vegetables."

"Smells amazing, did you need any help?" Her voice was so innocent. 'Perfect' She thought.

"You know what, yea you can cop the spinach and olives and drain the mushroom. I already have the tomatoes done."

"Yes sir boss man." She said in a mocking tone. He just smiled.

Everything was ready within twenty minutes. They both grabbed plates and ate in the living room. They decided to watch a movie, Wedding Crashers, their favorite movie, coincidentally. They made it through he movie, nearly choking on their food from laughing so hard. About two and a half hours later Serena was sound asleep.

Darien turned off the TV and picked up their plates and placed them in the sink. Then he went to pick Serena up and took her to her room. He carried her in his arms and placed her on top of the bed and then tucked her in, careful not to wake her up. He left, leaving the door slightly ajar. He walked towards his room to get ready for bed. Once he reached his room, he walked into his bathroom to take a quick shower and get ready for bed.

He fell into a deep sleep, dreaming about the case and how it would turn out. Whatever it would be, he knew that no matter what he would protect Serena, there was no question about it. But life changing events would soon make him decide between two things he held near and dear to his heart. He would never be prepared for what was about to come.

A/N: This is a rewritten chapter 6, I mostly changed the end of this chapter. I wanted to change some things around from Darien and Serena's relationship. But I promise I will make up for it in later chapters. It's about to get good.


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Sorry for the delay. Here's the next chapter. Enjoy!

Chapter 7

The next morning Darien woke up to a loud knock at his door. He put on a shirt and rose up from his bed. He passed by his hallway clock, taking notice that it was 6:30 in the morning. He rubbed his eyes tiredly and opened the door. As soon as he opened it, he regretted it.

"Well hello big brother."

"Good morning Raye." He whispered in an agitated tone.

"Well are you gonna let me come in or what?"

"I'm gonna go with or what." Darien gave Raye a nasty look; he obviously knew she wouldn't let up. "Alright Raye, come in."

"Thank you." She said. She walked around his apartment, observing it, taking a mental note of everything in sight. "Darien." She paused and pointed to a pair of boots. "Is there a girl here?" Her eyebrow was raised and a sly smirk found its way upon her face.

Darien's eyes nearly popped out of his head. He had almost forgotten about Serena's "sleepover". Oh he was gonna here it from Raye.

"Um yeah, there is, but it's not what you think. She's a part of the case I'm working and her apartment was trashed so I offered her the guest bedroom." He gave a nervous laugh and rubbed the back of his head, hoping Raye would believe him, after all it was the truth.

"So, this is just part of your job, babysitting?"

"No, I'm not babysitting her; she needed a place to stay for a while, until her place was processed and cleaned. I'm just doing my job, nothing more nothing less." He tried to explain, but by the looks of Raye's face, she wasn't buying it.

"My question is, why you? I know there are plenty of other people that could help her out with a place to stay. Don't you guys have houses ready for situations like… well like this?"

"I offered her my guest bedroom, that's all. I didn't ask her to marry me before the first date." Darien then noticed the look on her face.

"Ah ha! You like this woman! Finally you get back in the game."

"Wait, what?" Darien was utterly confused. "So that whole scene just a few seconds ago, was to get info out of me. You and your damn psychological mind games, I hate when you do that."

"Sorry that you're so easily manipulated. But that's my job. If you didn't have any and I mean any feelings for this woman, you would have come up with a way better analogy. So tell me, who is she?"

For the next hour, Darien explained his nonexistent relationship with Serena and her background (aside from her family) and Raye seemed intrigued by her. She was quite impressed, but what impressed her most of all, was that a woman he's only know for a few days could do this to her brother. She could already tell her would do just about anything to save her life, but she knew it wasn't quite love just yet.

Darien was about to explain some of the case to her when they heard a voice crack behind them. Serena's eyelids were slowly trying to open and she stopped in front of both Raye and Darien.

"Oh hi, I thought I heard voices." She said in a small voice.

"Good morning Serena. Um this is my sister Raye, Raye this is Serena." Raye got up from her seat and went to shake her hand.

"Hi, it's nice to meet you. Darien's told me about a lot about you." Raye said.

"All good I hope."

"For the most part. I am sorry about the situation you are in right now."

"Yea, thanks. I just wish this guy would get caught already but what can you do. Darien's told me about you as well. I see someone is ready to give birth." Serena smiled looking down at Raye's round belly.

"Yea, I'm about ready to pop, almost done with my third trimester. I'm supposed to deliver about month or so." Serena motioned her to sit down. "So Darien tells me you're an emergency doctor."

"Yeah, been in the field for a little over seven years. It's a stressful job, but I love it anyway. I'm sorry, but Darien didn't tell me what you do."

"Of course he didn't." She looked towards Darien, who pretended not to hear their conversation. "I wouldn't expect him to. Well, I'm a psychologist consultant for the precinct. I'm usually there for profiling, among other things."

"If you don't mind, could I ask you some questions regarding the case? I know you're on maternity leave but I just what to make sure my hunch is somewhat correct."

"Absolutely." Serena smiled at her response and she ran to Darien asking for the case files. He left the kitchen and made his way to his office to grab the files. Minutes later he emerged from the office, placing the files on the counter in front of the girls.

"Okay so I took several classes in psychology when I went to medical school and I kept some of my books and one specific book I kept was related to all psychological disorders and such. It got me thinking, based on, what I am assuming to be another fill in psychologist, is that whoever this killer is, he is suffering from a disorder known as erotomania."

Serena explained her findings to Raye, who, in turn, agreed with everything she was saying. Raye was even more impressed with Serena. Raye had even hoped that she and Serena would be close friends in the near future.

Darien, on the other hand, was rendered speechless. He had never seen Raye adapt to someone so quickly, which made Darien even more… fond of Serena, to put it lightly. He just smiled at the two girls, when his phone rang.

"Hello?" Darien answered. "Oh hey Seiya. Yeah she's here. Alright I'll tell her. Alright, bye." He hung up the phone and walked over to Raye. "Your husband just called, said you had a doctor's appointment at nine."

"Oh shit! Son of a- alright. Serena, I gotta go, sorry. But we'll finish this soon, yea?"

"Yea. I totally understand." Serena smiled and helped her up. "Um Raye, did you drive here?"

"No, I wish. My stomach is too big to fit in the driver's seat. I took a taxi."

"How are you getting to the appointment?" Serena asked concerned.

"Seiya's waiting downstairs for her." Darien chimed in. "Come on I'll walk you down. Serena, don't open the door for anything and don't leave. I have a key so I want you to lock it after I leave."

"Yes sir Mr. Protector Sir." Serena raised her right hand to salute him. Darien just rolled his eyes at her apparent sarcasm. With that Darien and Raye left the apartment, leaving Serena to her own devices. She locked the door and walked back into the kitchen, poured herself some cereal and grabbed the case files and sat on the couch.

She looked at the files while eating, trying to piece together everything. The autopsy reports couldn't help her much. All it showed her was the killer killed all of his victims the same way. Tied up, then tortured and eventually bleeding to death. Victim number one: a successful CEO woman, two: a family lawyer, three: neurosurgeon, four: successful CFO, five: criminal defense lawyer and finally Serena, an emergency doctor.

Serena put some pieces together, noticing a pattern developing. She set her now empty bowl of cereal on the coffee table just as Darien entered the front door.

"Darien! I think I may have put some of these missing pieces together." She grabbed his hand and he closed and locked the door behind him and followed her to the couch. "Okay, here's what I have so far. The first victim was a business woman, more specifically a CEO of a pharmaceutical company, the second victim was a lawyer, the third victim was a doctor, the fourth, another business woman, a CFO and the last victim was a lawyer. Finally we have me, a doctor. The pattern is business woman, lawyer, doctor, business woman, lawyer, and doctor." She finished, slightly out of breath; she looked up at Darien wanting to see his reaction.

"Okay that's great Serena, but how is this supposed to help us out with the case?"

"Don't you see? Someone missed this huge clue. The two business women worked with each other, one a CEO, the other a CFO, the lawyer's work at the same practice but different fields, the neurosurgeon works at my hospital but we have about 13 floors between us. I've only worked at the hospital for a couple of years, I don't know everyone yet. But this says something. Whoever profiled this did this on purpose. If this person was experienced on profiling there is no way they could have missed these connections. I know Raye was just starting her maternity leave and you didn't want her involved with another case that you didn't know when it would end."

"So you're saying that this psychopath has connections at the hospital, and at the precinct?" Darien's face was getting paler by the minute.

"That's exactly what I'm saying. How else do you explain "Officer Chuck"? I know Lita, she would never give blood samples to anybody besides the police plus she wouldn't-" Serena stopped short.

"Serena, what? What else wouldn't Lita do?"

"She couldn't give it to the police unless they showed a warrant." Serena gulped, know realizing that whoever this person was had connections and they or he really wanted Serena. She visibly shook at her thought.

Darien noticed this and put his hand over hers.

"Don't worry Serena we'll catch this guy and whoever else is involved. I'll keep you safe, I promise."

Serena smiled at his words but it wasn't enough for her.

"Please, please don't make promises you can't keep. Unless you've met this guys and exchanged a few words with him about my safety, don't promise me anything. I don't want you to feel guilty about it, if anything should happen to me."

"Nothing is going to happen to you as long as you're here-"Darien was cut off by Serena.

"Look, I don't doubt that you can't protect me. I know you can. It's just, this guy is smart; he's already taken down five women, those of which didn't expect it. He's left no evidence, nothing. We can't even tell what he looks like. Darien, all I'm saying is that we can't predict the future. On TV the detectives always catch the killer, but in reality some aren't always caught. I know what we're faced against and I know this can end badly but I guess I've accepted the fact that something could happen at any moment." Serena squeezed his hand and smiled up at his.

"Serena, I will catch this guy, I don't want you thinking that way. Nothing is going to happen." Darien replied.

"This is reality, and unless you have an absolute guarantee, let's just focus on the case as of now." Serena finished speaking and got up and grabbed her bowl and took it to the kitchen to clean it. It was now a quarter past nine and Serena needed something that could take her mind off everything that was going on around her. Serena looked outside the huge window and noticed the dark clouds filling up the sky and sprinkles of rain splattering against the window. 'Well I guess a run is out of the question.' She thought to herself. "Darien, do you have a home gym of a gym in this building?"

"I have a home gym. May I ask why?"

"Like I told you before, when I'm stressed out, I exercise and since it looks like it's about to rain, a run in Central park is out of the question, and I know you won't let me leave the apartment unless you're with me, so I was wondering if you had a gym here."

"Yea, it's on the other side of the apartment, I'll take you there." He said.

"Okay thanks, let me change first." Serena ran towards her room and put on a pair of shorts, a tank top and some running shoes. Once she put her hair up she ran back outside and waited for Darien. He emerged from his room about five minutes later, sporting track pants and a white plain shirt and running shoes.

"Ready?" He asked. Serena shook her head yes and they left the apartment and made their way to the elevator and Darien pressed the basement button.

The ride down was quiet, not necessarily awkward just quiet. Serena was in her own little world while Darien was trying to process everything she had said minutes before they left. He questioned whether or not Serena believed he could protect her. He knows she said she did, but the way her eyes refused to meet his, sent confusing messages and Darien knew he would do, absolutely anything to avoid another victim.

The elevator ring broke Darien out of his thoughts and he motioned for Serena to go first. In the gym there were several treadmills, a few ellipticals, weight lifting benches and a boxing ring, equipped with its own gloves and helmets.

She studied the room, with a few ideas of her own, but pushed those thoughts away for a later time. She made her way to the treadmill as Darien walked over to the bench press. Both started their own workouts, both focusing on the correct forms rather than each other.

About an hour later both were working up a sweat and panting. Serena grabbed a towel and she pressed the towel on her face down and Darien released the bar and gave a tired puff of air. It was nearly eleven o'clock and Serena got a wicked thought, soon followed by a smile.

"Hey, Darien." She called out to him. He looked up and then stood up and walked over to her.

"What's up?" He asked cautiously after he saw the smile on her face.

"Well, remember when I told you my father was a detective too?" He nodded yes. "And remember when I told you he taught me how to protect myself? Well I was wondering if you wanted to spar with me." She pointed at the boxing ring and motioned him to the gear.

"I don't know Serena. You're much smaller than me and I have been professionally trained-"

"Oh, what? Are you afraid to lose to a girl? Please tell me you don't believe in the whole 'I'm a guy and you're a girl, it just wouldn't be fair' routine? Look I know what I'm doing. My father started teaching me when I was six and up until his death at sixteen. I have practiced for another eleven years with Lita, who happens to be an expert at karate. So don't tell me it wouldn't be fair." She placed her hands on her hips and huffed, staring right at Darien. He still didn't feel comfortable fighting her but he gave in in the end.

"Fine, fine. We'll spar, but as soon as I feel it get too out of hand. I'm pulling the plug."

"Fine, you big baby. I can take care of myself, no need to worry. How about we make things interesting?"

"How so?" He raised his eyebrow as both of them started putting on the gear.

"Loser has to do whatever the winner says ... for a whole day." Serena smiled and the determination in her eyes didn't go unnoticed by Darien.

"Deal." They entered the ring; thank God no one was in the gym, so they didn't have to worry about embarrassing themselves.

"Oh and Darien, if I feel that you're holding back, I will kick your ass and never speak to you and I will leave the apartment without any protection. No we wouldn't want that now would we?"

"You're bluffing." He squint his eyes, trying to look past her poker face.

"Maybe I am, maybe I'm not. Do you want to test it? You know me; I'm super stubborn if I have to be." With that Serena lunged at Darien, but he easily dodged her attack. He turned his body around, once again facing Serena, while she was now on the other side of him.

He waited patiently, for her next attack. In his mind, he was thinking ladies first. If she kept attacking him, she would tire herself out, she was relentless. They were soon throwing punches at each other, both dodging each other. Darien was surprised at her quick reflexes.

Serena tried to kick him in the chest, showing him that she meant business. He quickly saw her move and stepped back, giving himself enough room to catch her foot. She pushed her foot down, hoping it was enough force to release his grip, but it wasn't. He closed both of his hands over he foot and twisted it, making her turn over and fall. She was on the floor with her right foot in front of her and her left under her.

"Ow! Darien, I-I think my ankle is sprained." Serena took off her boxing gloves and helmet and held onto her ankle. Darien saw her face and decided she wasn't kidding. He took off his gear and threw it in the corner and knelt down beside her to help her up.

Serena saw her opportunity, she swept her right leg (injured ankle) under him, making him fall on his back and she straddled his stomach and grabbed both of his wrists and pinned them above his head.

"Like I said before, never underestimate me and never let your guard down, rule number one, you should know better Darien."

"I do know that, and I was somewhat prepared for you to do that." He smirked.

"Wait what do you m- WWWHHHAA!" Darien found his strength and flipped her over and now he was pinning her on the ground and he locked their legs, giving her no way out.

"Come on Serena. You think I'm that gullible. Rule number two, make your opponent think you're helpless. Like I told you before, I was professionally trained for many years." He smiled at her and gave her a wink.

"Luckily for me, my father taught me how to get out of a situation like this."

"How?"

"Like this." Serena let her body relax and she was able to get her knee high enough to the point of kicking Darien in the gut. He groaned and released his legs from hers. She was able to get some leverage and she used her lower body strength to push him off her.

She was able to get free. Both Darien and Serena stood up, in fighting stance. They soon forgot the time. Darien forgot about hurting her, soon learning she was right, she could protect herself. Darien kept dodging her kicks, while Serena dodged his fists.

For a few hours they forgot about the case, all there was, was them enjoying their time together and fighting. Nothing mattered at that point. After hours of continuous battles, it looked that neither of them would win soon, so they made a deal, the next one to get pinned would win.

Serena finally found the energy to try and take him down. With her speed and his strength, it cancelled each other out, but she could see he was beginning to grow tired. She ran towards him, grabbing his shoulders and swinging her body around, making him unprepared for the movement. She did another swift kick under his feet and once again straddled his midsection and pinned his wrists.

"Pinned." She said simply. Both were sweating profusely and breathing hard. He tried to free his wrists but he was too fatigued to try anymore.

"Fine you win." He looked at her and she jumped up and clapped her hands and cheered for herself. Darien lay there trying to process his loss. After a moment of celebration, on Serena's behalf, she offered her hand to him and helped him up.

"Darien… It was nice sparring with you, thank you." She gave a genuine smile and her returned her smile.

"It was no problem, really. It was fun. Come on, let's go get shower and then you can tell me what you want me to do." They left the gym, it was already half past two and they were both getting hungry.

That was the first thing Serena thought of 'lunch is on him' she thought. They walked into the elevator and Darien pressed his floor. Serena couldn't stop smiling, and Darien, well Darien was still dumbfounded at how he lost.

'I'll get her back later' He reassured himself.

A/N: Wow, longest chapter yet! Thanks for all the reviews and advice. Please review or PM me if ya want. Next chapter, Serena and Darien discuss the terms of the bet and Serena reveals what she wants him to do for the rest of the day.


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